Exe Oriental Panamá — Hotel in Bella Vista

The location is excellent. Just at the end of the Financial District with easy access to the Metro and taxis. The price was within reason for the location and offering. The room was larger than most others and clean. The view is good considering the tall buildings around. Furniture could have been better. One uncomfortable chair for the desk that would have made doing work on a laptop quite inconvenient. One small couch was also present with the cushions in the closet. The lighting was terrible. Some mood lighting behind the bed head and one floor lamp accompanied by two bedside table lamps (only one worked) made the room very dark with curtains drawn. Television channels were basic cable, with a few in English. The internet was slow. It averaged 2mb/s, so barely enough to get 1080p content with a Chromecast. Connection was easy, though. Breakfast was acceptable, but not a major spread. If you are looking for a variety book elsewhere. The breakfast staff was excellent, ensuring that what was there was quickly replenished. The quality was also very high. The staff were very friendly, welcoming and accommodating. The main issue is the check-in. While the staff are pleasant the process was overly complicated. I booked on Exe's site, yet it took them over 10 minutes to find the booking. Having arrived at 8am we checked in and paid. We knew the rooms would not be available until 1pm. That wasn't an issue. When we returned long after 1pm there was another squabble for the reservation! Apparently it could not be found, and papers had to be shifted in the office to be confirmed! The desk agent informed us that check out would be 1pm Thursday. Huh? We paid for: Checkout on Friday Late checkout (6pm according to the site). The agent then said OK. Come Thursday and one of the rooms was locked out! Come Friday, both rooms were locked out at 11am and the card had to be recorded! Considering these issues the Exe Oriental can neither be recommended nor not recommended. The quality of the product wasn't bad, but there is room for improvement. It is still on my list of may stays in Panama, just not...

This hotel is being used for quarantine.||||Having arrived from South America to panama with a negative Covid test prior the the flight and after a 3 hour wait at the airport for another pcr test upon arrival (again negative) we were held in the customs area for 1 hr the arrival area for 1 hr and then finally escorted by full military guard from the arrival area to the hotel where we waited in the bus for 1 hr and instructions and checkin took another 1 hr. So that’s 7 hours total; we arrived at 4pm got into the room around 11pm.||||Arriving in the room there was a moldy musty smell as one finds in humid climates where the air conditioning is not sufficient. The bed had a sheet on it and that was it NO BLANKETS and no towels. They forgot the towels which took another 1 hr for them to bring to our room.||||After getting the towels it was time for a shower after a long travel day and lots of waiting around. Guess what more waiting came as you turn the shower on and wait for the hot water to come. Your wait is vain as you won’t be getting any hot water. Yes a hotel which says it is a 4 star has NO HOT WATER!||||There is a specific sign on the wall that states the food being served does not come from the hotel. The food is somewhat edible. Think of it as the worst economy class meal you have ever had and take a few more points off.||||The entire quarantine process was just slightly better than unbearable; this is a review of the hotel not the process. No hot water and basic rooms billed as four star. Whether your there bc of quarantine or you are visiting panama check first to make sure you can get a blanket and some hot water or else stay far far away...

This hotel is being used for quarantine.||||Having arrived from South America to panama with a negative Covid test prior the the flight and after a 3 hour wait at the airport for another pcr test upon arrival (again negative) we were held in the customs area for 1 hr the arrival area for 1 hr and then finally escorted by full military guard from the arrival area to the hotel where we waited in the bus for 1 hr and instructions and checkin took another 1 hr. So that’s 7 hours total; we arrived at 4pm got into the room around 11pm.||||Arriving in the room there was a moldy musty smell as one finds in humid climates where the air conditioning is not sufficient. The bed had a sheet on it and that was it NO BLANKETS and no towels. They forgot the towels which took another 1 hr for them to bring to our room.||||After getting the towels it was time for a shower after a long travel day and lots of waiting around. Guess what more waiting came as you turn the shower on and wait for the hot water to come. Your wait is vain as you won’t be getting any hot water. Yes a hotel which says it is a 4 star has NO HOT WATER!||||There is a specific sign on the wall that states the food being served does not come from the hotel. The food is somewhat edible. Think of it as the worst economy class meal you have ever had and take a few more points off.||||The entire quarantine process was just slightly better than unbearable; this is a review of the hotel not the process. No hot water and basic rooms billed as four star. Whether your there bc of quarantine or you are visiting panama check first to make sure you can get a blanket and some hot water or else stay far far away...